Can You Crack This? That Forgotten Dutch Invention Which Shaped the Modern Globe
There are numerous contenders for the designation as “planet’s most significant invention.” The circular axle. The printing press. The steam engine.
As per a new book, however, that title belongs to the mechanised sawmill invented through Dutch inventor Corneliszoon van Uitgeest in 1593.
“Prior to mechanised sawing, constructing a simple merchant vessel required around 10 lumberjacks laboring for three months,” writes the author. “With wind-powered lumber mills, an identical amount of cut lumber might be produced within a week.”
Owing to this speedy mechanical saw, that turned logs into boards with almost no human effort, the Dutch were able to construct vessels faster than any other nation, an advantage that sparked a century of Netherlands naval, economic and cultural dominance across Europe and the globe.
The First Genuine Industrial Machine
The inventor's sawmill, contends Dávila, represented “humanity’s initial true industrial apparatus.” A windmill turned a wheel. One component converted the circular motion to vertical action to power the saw. A separate mechanism transformed the rotary movement into a lateral movement advancing the timber to the blade. A ratchet system moved the log forward a measured step per stroke.
“Each element was simple by itself. The Dutchman’s brilliance lay in how to combine them in order that they acted in a perfectly controlled sequence, cutting on every descending motion while moving with each upward stroke. This constituted a remarkably intelligent application of basic components.”
A fact that leads us up to the current challenge. The task is you to reinvent one of the fundamental ideas behind this historic invention.
Round and Up
Design a mechanism that turns rotary motion to vertical motion. Your available these components exclusively: A spinning wheel. Two pins. Two rods. A “guide”, that is a tube or housing through which one of the rods will fit perfectly. (Assume it is possible to put things on a stand, so the components do not fall down.)
The solution returns later today UK featuring the solution.
Meanwhile, NO SPOILERS. Rather, please propose (non obvious) contenders for the world’s greatest invention.
